The marble tower stares at me; lush hills trail behind me. The fortress has eyes. Dark and glowing white hooded figures standing from every edge and balcony. I kneel beneath them. My black cloak tried to shield me. This is my punishment for running away, confined to the prison that once was my home. Spend my days climbing the numerous […]
I can stitch your heart back together with a brush of my fingertips. Did you know that? I run through the jungle barefooted, hiding from you. Some of my people trail me; we must reach the gates to return to the sanctuary; you do everything in your power to stop me. You cut down the ropes I tie between the […]
They tighten my corset but I fear there has been a mistake. But they dismiss my claims, placing a crown of gold and lead on my head. My dark curls come out as I walk before my people holding a torch; they amplify the magic I never knew I had. Before them, in a hall of marble, a princess with […]
Originally published on https://uosstudyingabroad.wordpress.com/ As the beginning of my second term at the Université de Lausanne approaches, I have been thinking about the start of my study abroad experience, everything I wish I had done, and what I’m going to try to do next term. Classes: As a literature student, I was dead set on taking literature courses, so I […]
Bow before your queen You are nothing but a metaphor. ‘Dress as if it is your last day on earth- because it is.’ Skin that is still healing from childhood falls, I kneel for the first time in my life. I braid my hair lazily, leaving strands that could have been pulled out by the wind, Because I know I […]
Ophelia poses by the lake, Unbeknownst, it is the one who will draw her breath away. The tree that will betray her, Her flowers ready for a funeral, She stares on. At the water that will veil her in death, The olive branches will fall around to grant her peace, Her skirts of candid feathers will weigh her down. She […]
I beg the mirror one more time, Show me Show me Who I will become. You will be as beautiful as a rose So I use them to tie my hair, Crush the petals to make pigment for my cheekbones. You will be as slender as a fairy So I tie golden bands around my arms, And wear clothes too […]
Thorns form a bracelet as I bite down on the rose petals, Drinking in the dew drops. I imagine it is your blood, You’re the one who planted them, after all. They climb the walls of the palace, Begging me to escape with them, Showing me the way, Blossoms have more freedom than I do. The thorns dig further into […]
I lose myself in the water so much I cannot look away. If my fall blesses me, the lilypads might cushion me, And the lotus flowers crown me before I drown. I cannot forget what the trees look like; I see them caressing the hair of my other self, Who smiles from below and reassures me of my destiny. But […]
Like every day, I watch her from afar. Her last days of freedom, she walks along the cliffs and stares at the waves in the distance. Gone are her colourful past gowns, But luckily, I cannot lose her among the waves; the red parasol draws me in like a beacon. Her sister alongside her, A guard with invisible knives pressed […]